As you may have seen in Friday’s post, I recently bought The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds for Nintendo 3DS. This is a description of my first half hour or so with the game.
Link has overslept and has to hurry to the workplace of a blacksmith. Before leaving the house, I noticed that Majora’s Mask is hanging on Link’s wall! What’s that all about?
By looking at the overworld map, I can’t help but notice that it looks almost identical to the world of A Link to the Past. I knew A Link Between Worlds was set in the same world as A Link to the Past, but I wasn’t expecting the world to be practically identical!
Anyway, the blacksmith sends me off on an errand to return a sword to a captain who left it behind. On my way, I ran into a Hyrule soldier who commented about vandals painting on all the walls…that’s pretty funny if you know what Link can do later in the game. I was told to go to the sanctuary, but I did a little exploring first. I stopped to take a look at Kakariko Village, with all its familiar sights. The buildings were all locked or closed of course, but it was definitely a nostalgic visit.
I also walked into the Haunted Grove and the animals scattered, just like they did in A Link to the Past. It’s just a joy to revisit these memorable places from A Link to the Past.
I eventually went ahead to the sanctuary, and I was surprised to see Dampe’ from Ocarina of Time outside. But something bad happened inside the sanctuary, and I was unable to go in. Dampe told me there was a secret passage from the graveyard into the sanctuary. So I had to push some gravestones until I found some stairs, which led me down into the sewers. I had to use a lantern to light the way while avoiding rats. It’s a lot like a scene from A Link to the Past. Once I got to the sanctuary, I saw that the captain and a woman named Seres were turned into paintings by a villain named Yuga. It looked like a woman, but the game referred to Yuga as “him.” After a failed attempt at attacking Yuga, I was knocked unconscious and I woke up back in my house.
I was told I had to get to the castle to warn Princess Zelda. Once I reached her, she told me I needed to find the elder, Sahasrahla, in Kakariko Village. I went to see him, and he told me to go ahead to the Eastern Palace. This series of events closely mirrors those of A Link to the Past. A Link Between Worlds was originally going to be a remake of A Link to the Past before it turned into a sequel, and it really shows. The early going is surprisingly similar to the SNES classic. But that’s not a bad thing, as A Link to the Past was a great game (and my favorite Zelda game).
I’m not very far into A Link Between Worlds yet, but I am enjoying what I’ve seen so far. I’m looking forward to getting into a dungeon next time. However, I’m probably going to be focusing my gaming time on Super Mario 3D World for a while. But I will definitely get back to A Link Between Worlds, so keep checking Jeff’s Gaming Blog for updates on both games.
Buy The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds at Amazon
Buy Super Mario 3D World at Amazon
